I used to manufacture trailers (retired now) The light lead getting damaged was a continuous problem on the trailers I built for builders and farmers so I put a socket on the trailer (the same type as on the towing vehicle) and shipped the trailers with a lighting lead with a plug on each end.When the lead got damaged it was then just a simple job of supplying another lead.
I've seen some rental places doing something similar, but with the trailer-side lead shortened to be bolted to the frame, and then they had 3,4, and 6' lead extenders to connect with. I've considered doing the same for my trailer, but honestly, my trailer is a 4-pin with 4 dead bulbs. It's not worth the investment yet.
@Todd Orton when i build a sound system with amps and crossovers and all that i ground everything even the radio/headunit in one spot usually back where the amp grounds (seatbelt bolt) i end up with less to no alternator whine that way
Been rewiring trailers at work that have been hacked on over the years and have the 4 pin connectors instead of the 7 pin so brakes work. It has really helped me understand trailer wiring. 2 trailers completely rewired with functioning brakes and breakaway switches. One trailer I had to order new brakes because the old ones had been gutted. Towing heavy stuff is so much better with a operating trailer brakes.
I dont only put these boxes on my trailers I also put on my trucks . Also put some die electric grease on the terminals helps if water makes it in . Steve you are right to seal the box up they do tend to get water in them . These boxes make a good easy place to start when trying to figure out a wireing problem.
I was going to post the same thing about the wire. I'm not a mechanic, just like to tinker, but I ordered the same setup for my trailer and found out the hard way. Wired completely wrong. I added diodes and a switch so I could have reverse lights and work lights from the same set of LEDs, plus I had to get the correct relay for my F350. I live in upstate NY so I siliconed the hell out of it as well. We'll see how long that'll last.
Hi Stephen, Living in AZ well aware of what the sun does to plastic. Would recommend creating an aluminum shield to cover it, works great as a rock deflector also.
Glad to finally be able to comment. I wish I had known about those boxes about 15 years ago. My bosses trailer cables were more electrical tape than insulation. I ended up rigging up a terminal block up completely covered in silicone caulk until we could get another wire harness for his trailer.
Rather than cutting off the sealed plug I would have just rewired the ends into the junction box to the appropriate terminals. Pretty easy to do. Use a test light to see where the wires go, regardless of wire color. Adding that end just doubled the amount of connections which defeated the entire purpose of installing the junction box. Not hating. Just stating the obvious.
Did anybody ever stop to think that he may have ALREADY TESTED the lights & wiring to know for sure which wires went where. I always do to make sure I only have to do it once. I was told by my grandfather " if you don't have time to do it right now, what makes you think you'll have time to do it later." Very true. Have a great day.
As a long time truck driver, liked this video, trailer pullers always should always carry black electrical tape, also carry a electrical probe, also a good roll of MacGyver tape, get er done!!!!
Glad I waited till the end to comment I always put the junction box farther back but before the axles to make trailer brake wires as short as possible. And centralize the market lights. I agree with his comment about a semi style second plug on the trailer but I usually only see the round pin style double sided pigtails... most light duty trucks and trailers I've seen use the blade type plugs. I believe the semi used a different color code as well. And my final gripe is that I always run a jumper wire from the ground in the junction box to one of the mounting bolts just because I can.
I am about to install a JB myself, if you take the time to read the instructions, it clearly states that the wiring colours are likely not correct. Just change the order of the trailer wires in the box, you may have to start over on the connectors to have correct lengths though.
Helper Spring Shackles' or Load Leveling Spring Binders' I gotta say seeing someone mount a spare tire on those would probably make for an interesting video' 😷
My dad had a version of those wire strippers, must have been from the 1950's/60's. Reminded me of the "Rock'em Sock'em Robots". They worked well back then too.
I took it one step further for my trailer. Made the pigtail removable, with another 7 pin connector on the other end. The internals of the male and female ends are interchangeable with minor modifications. Being able to take the cord and keep it out of the weather or possibility of being damaged was well worth the time it took to do it. The other thing I do is, run a ground wire to everything. Don't rely on connections to the frame that will rust.
I bought a brand new 6 by 12 trailer back in 2005. Have a couple problems with the lights not working correctly, took it to a place to have it fixed and they said the entire trailer was wired wrong not even close as you say. They redid it and it's worked great ever since
True. But like everything. You can lock your door but if someone wants to come in they will. Most home doors only have a half inch of wood and a latch plate keeping you safe. So a trailer without lights won’t matter to someone if they want to steal it. Mine has a tongue lock and a wheel chock lock but five minutes with a grinder and they are gone. Again it’s all about how bad someone wants it. When you boil it down its really how much effort a thief is willing to put in. I have heard of guys stealing trailers locked up by backing up another trailer and a winch. They would be loaded and gone within minutes. So locks and lights are bypassed.
Every trailer manufacturer seems to wire the flat pin differently. I like to wire 7 wire round setups like a semi trailer. Green is right turn, yellow is left turn, red is brake lights, white is ground, blue is 12 volt positive, brown is tail and marker lights and black is clearance lights. I like to have a female receptacle on the trailer like a semi trailer and a coiled cord so it doesn't drag. There are adapters available to plug 7 wire round pin to 7 wire flat pin. You can also get an adapter to 4 wire flat connector so you can pull any trailer. It's sometimes handy to make your own adapters so you can change the wiring to match a trailer that isn't wired as expected.
Always remember to give your self extra tail (length) on the cord as you can never have too much tail I did that for years when I built trailers in the heavy duty trade Good on you for repairing the wiring on buddies unit
I also just love the connectors with the diagnostic lights on the connector. So much easier to diagnose problems. ETrailer has them as well as the box. Just make sure you don't get the RV version you got!
I like your suggestion of the 18 wheeler style and that is what I thought your video was about till the end. I will install the 18 wheeler style on my trailers.
At the 2:20 mark, those are not spare tire mounts, they're the attachment points for the chains that adjust the pressure on the spring bars of a weight distribution hitch. Nice job on the wiring! Thanks!
I used to be trailer poor. I had about 8 of them and I though I had a full time job trying to keep lights working until I put those boxes and 7 wire cable on them. Best move you can make.
I find that putting a little dielectric grease (or even axle grease or Vaseline) in the connectors before I crimp them makes them less likely to corrode later by keeping the air/moisture out
My brother lends his trailer out all the time and at least 3 times a year im fixing it , problem is when people dont own something they dont respect the value , if they had paid for the trailer they would respect it more , this is what i do , i ask the person who want to borrow can you afford to replace it if it gets wrecked ? And if they say yes then i say , then go buy your own because thats what i did , i needed it i bought it . Everyone wants to save a buck but when they damage they wont even cover the repair . I dont lend no more
That's pretty much how we wired up our trailers back when I was working on 18-wheelers once the factory wiring had crapped out. We made each circuit modular so if you lost/damaged a circuit, you could just remove it, make up a new one and install it. Made life much easier.
These are the cords we use, we put another flat 7 way on the bare wire side. smile.amazon.com/Bargman-54006-043-Connector-Coiled-Trailer/dp/B01C5IWPDO/
Little tip. Use no-ox grease on the wire before crimping. Use it again on the connector flats and threads before tightening it all up. This will guarantee corrosion of any sort will not get started. I used to make my living working in the telecom industry building bus bars and wiring both big and small power connections. Doing it so it would last 40 plus years was mandatory.
Suggestion, move the wires in the junction box instead of rewiring the plug. Yeah, confusing that the colors are not matching, but especially if you have a molded plug it's nice to keep it instead of putting one on that's clamped to the wire.
When I worked as a truck mechanic I had to rewire many trailers for various reasons and six wire cables and plugs was the norm as was at least four taillights with brake lights and turn lights in separate taillights. White: ground Black: clearance lights Brown: tail lights Red: stop lights Green: right turn light Yellow: left turn light Most pickups and the trailers they haul have only two taillights and combine the brake and turn signal light on the same circuit but heavier load trailers also have electric brakes connected to a battery that needs to be kept charged.
There are 2 standards for trailer plugs. The RV has a standard, which is the plug you got, and the utility trailer, which is what you needed. But no need to cut off the end, just change your color codes in the box.
There are 3 : 7 - Way Traditional - utility / equipment / cargo trailers 7 - Way RV Standard - 5th wheel / travel trailer / camper 7 - Way Heavy Duty - commercial / agriculture trailers 5/31/23
I bought one that was wired different as well. The plug fit the truck and was pretty well sealed, so I ohmed out the wire to the connectors and just swapped the connections in the junction box to match the trailers color/functions. I also left a note inside the junction box to remind me or to let the next user know.
I put the same junction box and semi pigtail on my trailer. I soldered the ends and used dielectric grease on all the connections. All of the lights have their own ground. I wish I could say it was the first time I wired it but I try not to lie.
Cord was wired correct, cord was wired to 7 way RV, the trailer was wired 7 way utility standard Cord (RV) color is first Trailer (Utility standard) color is second White to White ground Black to Red 12v + Green to Brown tail Red to yellow left brake/turn Brown to green right turn Blue to blue ele brakes Yellow to black reverse lights The black and red are sometimes swapped on the 7 way utility standard side
Good info Steven. Understand the esthetic about the terminations. I personally like to have mine longer for ease of termination. If in the field and I came across that JB. I would say to myself. This guy cared.
I like your acknowledgement that USA is a little different to other locations. You are a likeable sort of fellow so "subscription" . I will go for the heavy vehicle solution before the box type. But it's all good stuff here . Thanks Coxie.
My dad taught me the same thing always bring what you barrow back in better condition i always fill the tank higher then when I borrowed it even when my uncles let me barrow there quads
I put a female plug socket (like the one on the truck) in the trailer frame, and made a curly cord with two male ends on it. I just take it completely off and stow it when not in use. Be safe!
That looks like an awesome product. I have just been using metal electrical boxes from the hardware store for a house . No type of buss bar just butt connectors or insulated blade connectors. Thanks for showing this product.
Another idea: 7 pin trailer connectors have a 12 volt feed wire, so you can add a 12 volt outlet to the box. If you use a cigarette outlet, seal up the outlet with a cork. Now you can plug in a tire inflator or any number of other accessories. My inflator didn't reach my rear duals, let alone the trailer tires. This can also work on 4 pin trailer connectors if you wire it to your running lights, but of course you need your lights on for the port to work.
Usually, I dip the ends of wires in dielectric grease before I crimp on connections for a trailer. Might be overkill, but I've never had one rot back out on me after repairing.
5.0 out of 5 stars Great wiring box Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2019 Verified Purchase This is a really good box for wiring a trailer. Just a note about the wiring. There is 3 wiring patterns for a 7 way plug: 1. 7-way traditional 2. 7-way RV standard 3. 7-way Heavy duty This box is wired in the 7-way RV standard configuration. My suggestion is to use a tester on your vehicle first to be sure of how it is wired then compare it to the wiring diagram sent with this unit. This might save some headache later. It doesn’t make sense to me why there is three different color patterns to accomplish the same result but I hope this information helps. This is a well made item.
A lot of trailers use different wire color codes. Their are two common color codes. Most cords like you got come with blue being trailer brakes, black being 12v power, white ground. But the similarities end there. The lights is where it gets weird on one style yellow is left turn, green is right turn, and brown it the running lights and red is an auxiliary for reverse lights. On the other style red is left turn, brown is right turn, and green is running lights.
Those cords come set up with the “standard” R.V. color code of red left turn, brown right, and green running lights. When you install to a trailer that’s set up the other way just hook the brown trailer end to the green cord end, then green trailer to brown cord, then yellow trailer to red cord. Works everytime
I bought a set of small cable cutters at Tractor Supply a few years ago. They're curved jaw and have a sort of scissor action, but they don't have a compound action like bolt cutters. Might've paid 10 or 15 dollars in the "promotional" section (the area with all the cheap stuff). I can cut 10/2 w/ ground UF Romex with one hand, and if they don't have any nicks in the cutting edges, they'll cut big nylon braid hoses easier than shears or a knife. Good for welding cable and trailer wiring, too.
soldering the tips of the wire before putting crimps on will help the connection better and prevent the wires from pulling out sometimes when they corrode
next time replacing a pigtail you will know ( remember ) to check the replacements wire layout, especially if made in China where the same plug can have many different wiring sets depending on the day, at least they did not use the same color of wire for all of them.
We have replaced the Pig-tale on our camper. We installed a female plug like the unit for a 7 pin truck jack. We bought a replacement cord and installed a ale jack for the female plug for a jumper cables between the truck and trailer,
What gets really confusing is the differences in rv trailer wiring and utility equipment trailer wiring. Terminals all pin out the same, just differnt color wires. I've been using those junction boxes for years and I love them. The ones I get from my local napa dont have a cord on them, but they do have an o ring seal between the box and the lid.
Should of added an extra earth wire to the wire harness inside the terminal box. It will make everything work so much better especially if it has eclectic Brakes.
Agreed. ALWAYS fill the tank. It's far cheaper to fill a friend's fuel tank than to rent a truck. It's also cheaper than owning a truck for those few task. Our house rule when borrowing my dad's truck was bring it back full. A friend left me hanging once with an empty tank. Next time he needed the truck, it wasn't available.
Helpful hint...try to avoid dropping the katapult (wire stripper), the jaws can be knocked out of alignment causing wires to be cut during the stripping process. They can be reset tho.
Stephen you’re supposed to cut the wires all the same length and then crisscross/tangle them up so that the lid has to be forced on😂, nice neat job, good work.
Work for HD Rental, I put a jumper cables on the 4 flat connection that always seems to come back damaged. That way the store just has to plug another one in. Quick fix to keep it rent ready
Yea I use those boxes on our fleet trucks or trailer 👍 they hold up good out in this AZ desert 🌵, if you don’t mind a recommendation I would add a second ground use the bolt to the cable clamp u installed and run it back it the box for ground it dose help
I insist that every customer of mine gets these. I have for years. I also only install molded cable and 7 way. Thank you for posting for more to understand
As a Maintenance Tech, what would you pay for a trailer test box?? This box would hook to a 12 volt battery, and test all lights, turn signals, shorts and grounds. Or use the Red wire constant 12V to test that the tow rig has enough juice to handle the trailer.
Reminds me of that guy i let use my 3/4 electric drill, he locked the trigger lock on and it got away on him and ripped the cord off. That’s how I got it back.
At time 10:10 you talk about borrowing things and taking them back washed and full of gas and oil changed, thank you I graduated high school with a guy who became a lawyer and while he was getting started in his practice he called me to see if he could borrow my 4-wheeler and he would return it washed waxed oil changed and full of gas so any time he asked to borrow it I was more than happy to loan it to him I have loaned out a trailer to friends and had them returned with flats wires ripped off or lights broken. Needless to say I no longer loan things out anymore.
Older Ford L model trucks had a box similar to that and had a grease nub on them so you could pump grease into them and have seen those 7 terminal boxes on semi trailers with the grease fitting on them
I was surprised to hear that 12 ga. wire was used. I would think that 18 ga. or 16 ga. would work better. I like the idea of the junction box and agree with you that trailer manufacturer's should make them standard equipment. Also, the crimpers that you used are PDG (pretty damn good).
@@ROTTK9 Please correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't 18 ga. pretty much standard for automotive use (the exception being high current circuits starter motors, headlights and auxiliary motors etc.) interior lights, windows, and door locks usually don't require much current. Cost should be lower with the 18 ga. Next would be flexibility, sharper bends with smaller wires. I'd have to check the specs, but !8 ga. should be able to handle the max. current load for most trailer applications. Most of us, me included, follow the mantra that bigger is better and for most applications that works well, but not all. Still the fix you installed will work very well and should last almost forever.
All the connections in the box just add resistance. I found installing a permanent male connector on the trailer then using a removable jumper with two female ends to go from truvk to trailer. Then only the jumper gets abused and is easily replace
I used to manufacture trailers (retired now) The light lead getting damaged was a continuous problem on the trailers I built for builders and farmers so I put a socket on the trailer (the same type as on the towing vehicle) and shipped the trailers with a lighting lead with a plug on each end.When the lead got damaged it was then just a simple job of supplying another lead.
I've seen some rental places doing something similar, but with the trailer-side lead shortened to be bolted to the frame, and then they had 3,4, and 6' lead extenders to connect with. I've considered doing the same for my trailer, but honestly, my trailer is a 4-pin with 4 dead bulbs. It's not worth the investment yet.
When I add a junction block, I always add a ground to the mounting bolt. You can never have to many grounds
That's a damn good idea!
true statement
actually if you were working on a car stereo too many grounds can cause a lot of noise in a sound system in a car/truck
@Todd Orton when i build a sound system with amps and crossovers and all that i ground everything even the radio/headunit in one spot usually back where the amp grounds (seatbelt bolt) i end up with less to no alternator whine that way
* too
That's my same philosophy about borrowing other peoples stuff always bring it back in better condition. Great video
Unfortunately the guy with that philosophy is usually the guy that owns the nice equipment. The borrowers DGAF. At least thats been my experience.
it would be great if my neighbor ever returned borrowed tools.
Hey Stephen!
Yeah, 07:00 you are describing Klipstein's 4th law of electrical engineering! "Any wire cut to length will be too short!". LOL!
Ken
kejay74 I always leave extra haha
Michael Jason Bourne Understood. There are two kinds of people that deserve damnation....Thieves & ‘Short wire’ electricians!!
LOL
Ken
Been rewiring trailers at work that have been hacked on over the years and have the 4 pin connectors instead of the 7 pin so brakes work. It has really helped me understand trailer wiring. 2 trailers completely rewired with functioning brakes and breakaway switches. One trailer I had to order new brakes because the old ones had been gutted. Towing heavy stuff is so much better with a operating trailer brakes.
I dont only put these boxes on my trailers I also put on my trucks . Also put some die electric grease on the terminals helps if water makes it in . Steve you are right to seal the box up they do tend to get water in them . These boxes make a good easy place to start when trying to figure out a wireing problem.
Your work ethic is perfect. I always give borrowed equipment better than before I borrowed it. BRAVO!
Love how you return things after using them! Great morals.
I was going to post the same thing about the wire. I'm not a mechanic, just like to tinker, but I ordered the same setup for my trailer and found out the hard way. Wired completely wrong. I added diodes and a switch so I could have reverse lights and work lights from the same set of LEDs, plus I had to get the correct relay for my F350. I live in upstate NY so I siliconed the hell out of it as well. We'll see how long that'll last.
Hi Stephen, Living in AZ well aware of what the sun does to plastic. Would recommend creating an aluminum shield to cover it, works great as a rock deflector also.
Glad to finally be able to comment. I wish I had known about those boxes about 15 years ago. My bosses trailer cables were more electrical tape than insulation. I ended up rigging up a terminal block up completely covered in silicone caulk until we could get another wire harness for his trailer.
Great job. I’ve been doing automotive wiring for 15 years and you did a great job covering the subject.
Rather than cutting off the sealed plug I would have just rewired the ends into the junction box to the appropriate terminals.
Pretty easy to do. Use a test light to see where the wires go, regardless of wire color.
Adding that end just doubled the amount of connections which defeated the entire purpose of installing the junction box.
Not hating. Just stating the obvious.
Did anybody ever stop to think that he may have ALREADY TESTED the lights & wiring to know for sure which wires went where. I always do to make sure I only have to do it once. I was told by my grandfather " if you don't have time to do it right now, what makes you think you'll have time to do it later." Very true. Have a great day.
Thats what I did
As a long time truck driver, liked this video, trailer pullers always should always carry black electrical tape, also carry a electrical probe, also a good roll of MacGyver tape, get er done!!!!
Glad I waited till the end to comment
I always put the junction box farther back but before the axles to make trailer brake wires as short as possible. And centralize the market lights.
I agree with his comment about a semi style second plug on the trailer but I usually only see the round pin style double sided pigtails... most light duty trucks and trailers I've seen use the blade type plugs. I believe the semi used a different color code as well.
And my final gripe is that I always run a jumper wire from the ground in the junction box to one of the mounting bolts just because I can.
I am about to install a JB myself, if you take the time to read the instructions, it clearly states that the wiring colours are likely not correct. Just change the order of the trailer wires in the box, you may have to start over on the connectors to have correct lengths though.
2:18 FYI, these are not spare tire carriers. They are where the arms of a load leveling hitch attach to.
Yea i was like what spare tire carriers!!! Lol
I noticed that as well..
I quit watching..when he said spare tire carriers....rest of wideo was prolly not worth watching...
Helper Spring Shackles' or Load Leveling Spring Binders' I gotta say seeing someone mount a spare tire on those would probably make for an interesting video' 😷
Having said that, I mnt no disrespect to you Sir, I have enjoyed your videos! 😷
My dad had a version of those wire strippers, must have been from the 1950's/60's. Reminded me of the "Rock'em Sock'em Robots". They worked well back then too.
I took it one step further for my trailer. Made the pigtail removable, with another 7 pin connector on the other end. The internals of the male and female ends are interchangeable with minor modifications. Being able to take the cord and keep it out of the weather or possibility of being damaged was well worth the time it took to do it. The other thing I do is, run a ground wire to everything. Don't rely on connections to the frame that will rust.
I bought a brand new 6 by 12 trailer back in 2005. Have a couple problems with the lights not working correctly, took it to a place to have it fixed and they said the entire trailer was wired wrong not even close as you say. They redid it and it's worked great ever since
The other advantage of the 18 wheeler wiring is you can take the wire with you if you need to leave the trailer. (cuts down on theft)
Y Pop oh I like that!
Yeah because someone stealing your trailer is going to worry if it has lights LOL
True. But like everything. You can lock your door but if someone wants to come in they will. Most home doors only have a half inch of wood and a latch plate keeping you safe. So a trailer without lights won’t matter to someone if they want to steal it. Mine has a tongue lock and a wheel chock lock but five minutes with a grinder and they are gone. Again it’s all about how bad someone wants it. When you boil it down its really how much effort a thief is willing to put in. I have heard of guys stealing trailers locked up by backing up another trailer and a winch. They would be loaded and gone within minutes. So locks and lights are bypassed.
@@Jenuin I agree but it is another part in the fight
But from experience i can tell you it gives you 2 places to have a bad connection
Every trailer manufacturer seems to wire the flat pin differently. I like to wire 7 wire round setups like a semi trailer. Green is right turn, yellow is left turn, red is brake lights, white is ground, blue is 12 volt positive, brown is tail and marker lights and black is clearance lights. I like to have a female receptacle on the trailer like a semi trailer and a coiled cord so it doesn't drag. There are adapters available to plug 7 wire round pin to 7 wire flat pin. You can also get an adapter to 4 wire flat connector so you can pull any trailer. It's sometimes handy to make your own adapters so you can change the wiring to match a trailer that isn't wired as expected.
I’ve been using this set up on all my trailers for the last 10 or so years and have changed just about all my buddies to using it.
Now you know sir mama would never roll her eyes LOL LOL y'all be blessed
And thank you very much for the video very Helpful
I have done both female plugs on truck and trailer. Never had one stolen. Works great!
Thank you for saying that if you borrow something bring it back in better condition than you received it ! Subscribed.
Dielectric grease on connections in that junction box will go along way.
That's some good stuff.Use whenever I make connections.
Always remember to give your self extra tail (length) on the cord as you can never have too much tail I did that for years when I built trailers in the heavy duty trade
Good on you for repairing the wiring on buddies unit
I also just love the connectors with the diagnostic lights on the connector. So much easier to diagnose problems. ETrailer has them as well as the box. Just make sure you don't get the RV version you got!
I like your suggestion of the 18 wheeler style and that is what I thought your video was about till the end. I will install the 18 wheeler style on my trailers.
At the 2:20 mark, those are not spare tire mounts, they're the attachment points for the chains that adjust the pressure on the spring bars of a weight distribution hitch.
Nice job on the wiring!
Thanks!
I used to be trailer poor. I had about 8 of them and I though I had a full time job trying to keep lights working until I put those boxes and 7 wire cable on them. Best move you can make.
I have done both female plugs on truck and trailer. Never had one stolen. Works great and then I have the conveniences you mentioned.
Lets hope that one day most everything we buy will say Made in USA.
Silver Grizzly that will cost alot
mike strauss but save a whole lot of time and trouble!
Lee Bougneit for those who can afford it.
It has already cost more than this country canaford,
Let's hope that one day, everything will be a reasonable price.USA manufacturers charge to much.
I find that putting a little dielectric grease (or even axle grease or Vaseline) in the connectors before I crimp them makes them less likely to corrode later by keeping the air/moisture out
Text book trailer loan out. Never returns the way it left.
My brother lends his trailer out all the time and at least 3 times a year im fixing it , problem is when people dont own something they dont respect the value , if they had paid for the trailer they would respect it more , this is what i do , i ask the person who want to borrow can you afford to replace it if it gets wrecked ? And if they say yes then i say , then go buy your own because thats what i did , i needed it i bought it . Everyone wants to save a buck but when they damage they wont even cover the repair . I dont lend no more
😂
A car trailer Is like your Girlfriend. You never let your friends use it because it always comes back F☆*ked.
Try owning a motorbike trailer. Was with other people more than with me😡
‘There is Nothing wrong with the splice” as the tape is coming off and it is all gummy.
Yep...put one on my small gooseneck a while back 👍. Thanks for the video!
That's pretty much how we wired up our trailers back when I was working on 18-wheelers once the factory wiring had crapped out. We made each circuit modular so if you lost/damaged a circuit, you could just remove it, make up a new one and install it. Made life much easier.
My friend put one of these on my flatbed and two trailers now. Definitely a great idea.
We put male side connectors on the trailer and use slinky cords to connect them like you suggested. Been doing it for years on the farm, works great.
These are the cords we use, we put another flat 7 way on the bare wire side. smile.amazon.com/Bargman-54006-043-Connector-Coiled-Trailer/dp/B01C5IWPDO/
Little tip. Use no-ox grease on the wire before crimping. Use it again on the connector flats and threads before tightening it all up. This will guarantee corrosion of any sort will not get started. I used to make my living working in the telecom industry building bus bars and wiring both big and small power connections. Doing it so it would last 40 plus years was mandatory.
Nice junction box
Lol "I'm about to start plotting!" 🤣 Sleep with one eye open Steven, you might wake up with one eyebrow, or something super glued!!!!🤣😁😂
Love it when the turn signal pulses the brakes!
Suggestion, move the wires in the junction box instead of rewiring the plug. Yeah, confusing that the colors are not matching, but especially if you have a molded plug it's nice to keep it instead of putting one on that's clamped to the wire.
That’s actually smart af
When I worked as a truck mechanic I had to rewire many trailers for various reasons and six wire cables and plugs was the norm as was at least four taillights with brake lights and turn lights in separate taillights.
White: ground
Black: clearance lights
Brown: tail lights
Red: stop lights
Green: right turn light
Yellow: left turn light
Most pickups and the trailers they haul have only two taillights and combine the brake and turn signal light on the same circuit but heavier load trailers also have electric brakes connected to a battery that needs to be kept charged.
There are 2 standards for trailer plugs. The RV has a standard, which is the plug you got, and the utility trailer, which is what you needed. But no need to cut off the end, just change your color codes in the box.
There are 3 :
7 - Way Traditional - utility / equipment / cargo trailers
7 - Way RV Standard - 5th wheel / travel trailer / camper
7 - Way Heavy Duty - commercial / agriculture trailers
5/31/23
I bought one that was wired different as well. The plug fit the truck and was pretty well sealed, so I ohmed out the wire to the connectors and just swapped the connections in the junction box to match the trailers color/functions. I also left a note inside the junction box to remind me or to let the next user know.
I put the same junction box and semi pigtail on my trailer. I soldered the ends and used dielectric grease on all the connections. All of the lights have their own ground. I wish I could say it was the first time I wired it but I try not to lie.
Cord was wired correct, cord was wired to 7 way RV, the trailer was wired 7 way utility standard
Cord (RV) color is first
Trailer (Utility standard) color is second
White to White ground
Black to Red 12v +
Green to Brown tail
Red to yellow left brake/turn
Brown to green right turn
Blue to blue ele brakes
Yellow to black reverse lights
The black and red are sometimes swapped on the 7 way utility standard side
Good info Steven. Understand the esthetic about the terminations. I personally like to have mine longer for ease of termination. If in the field and I came across that JB. I would say to myself. This guy cared.
I like your acknowledgement that USA is a little different to other locations. You are a likeable sort of fellow so "subscription" . I will go for the heavy vehicle solution before the box type. But it's all good stuff here . Thanks Coxie.
My dad taught me the same thing always bring what you barrow back in better condition i always fill the tank higher then when I borrowed it even when my uncles let me barrow there quads
I put a female plug socket (like the one on the truck) in the trailer frame, and made a curly cord with two male ends on it. I just take it completely off and stow it when not in use. Be safe!
you drill a giant hole in the frame?
That looks like an awesome product. I have just been using metal electrical boxes from the hardware store for a house . No type of buss bar just butt connectors or insulated blade connectors. Thanks for showing this product.
I used the sealed boxes for damp locations. They have worked well.
Another idea: 7 pin trailer connectors have a 12 volt feed wire, so you can add a 12 volt outlet to the box. If you use a cigarette outlet, seal up the outlet with a cork. Now you can plug in a tire inflator or any number of other accessories. My inflator didn't reach my rear duals, let alone the trailer tires.
This can also work on 4 pin trailer connectors if you wire it to your running lights, but of course you need your lights on for the port to work.
Usually, I dip the ends of wires in dielectric grease before I crimp on connections for a trailer. Might be overkill, but I've never had one rot back out on me after repairing.
I do also or use heat shrink connectors, but both work.
5.0 out of 5 stars Great wiring box
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2019
Verified Purchase
This is a really good box for wiring a trailer. Just a note about the wiring. There is 3 wiring patterns for a 7 way plug:
1. 7-way traditional
2. 7-way RV standard
3. 7-way Heavy duty
This box is wired in the 7-way RV standard configuration. My suggestion is to use a tester on your vehicle first to be sure of how it is wired then compare it to the wiring diagram sent with this unit. This might save some headache later. It doesn’t make sense to me why there is three different color patterns to accomplish the same result but I hope this information helps. This is a well made item.
A lot of trailers use different wire color codes. Their are two common color codes. Most cords like you got come with blue being trailer brakes, black being 12v power, white ground. But the similarities end there. The lights is where it gets weird on one style yellow is left turn, green is right turn, and brown it the running lights and red is an auxiliary for reverse lights. On the other style red is left turn, brown is right turn, and green is running lights.
Those cords come set up with the “standard” R.V. color code of red left turn, brown right, and green running lights. When you install to a trailer that’s set up the other way just hook the brown trailer end to the green cord end, then green trailer to brown cord, then yellow trailer to red cord. Works everytime
Those wire strippers ARE THE BEST!!
I bought a set of small cable cutters at Tractor Supply a few years ago. They're curved jaw and have a sort of scissor action, but they don't have a compound action like bolt cutters. Might've paid 10 or 15 dollars in the "promotional" section (the area with all the cheap stuff). I can cut 10/2 w/ ground UF Romex with one hand, and if they don't have any nicks in the cutting edges, they'll cut big nylon braid hoses easier than shears or a knife. Good for welding cable and trailer wiring, too.
The Klien version is model No. 63050; harbor freight sells them too
soldering the tips of the wire before putting crimps on will help the connection better and prevent the wires from pulling out sometimes when they corrode
Yup. Bought that box last year and had the same issue. Wish it came with a warning or instructions on how to wire for US trailers.
Me too.
I too have the auto wire strippers (Klien), also their ratchet crimpers... great for large diameter wire.
next time replacing a pigtail you will know ( remember ) to check the replacements wire layout, especially if made in China where the same plug can have many different wiring sets depending on the day, at least they did not use the same color of wire for all of them.
Those mounts are for a weight distribution system.
We have replaced the Pig-tale on our camper. We installed a female plug like the unit for a 7 pin truck jack. We bought a replacement cord and installed a ale jack for the female plug for a jumper cables between the truck and trailer,
What gets really confusing is the differences in rv trailer wiring and utility equipment trailer wiring. Terminals all pin out the same, just differnt color wires. I've been using those junction boxes for years and I love them. The ones I get from my local napa dont have a cord on them, but they do have an o ring seal between the box and the lid.
Should of added an extra earth wire to the wire harness inside the terminal box. It will make everything work so much better especially if it has eclectic Brakes.
Nothing beats a good stripper.
Uhaul uses the 4 pin and the have a plug on the trailer that they can replace the whole cord with a new one.
I like the bad one's sorry
Lol Trailer wire and RV style. Went thru same thing
Agreed. ALWAYS fill the tank. It's far cheaper to fill a friend's fuel tank than to rent a truck. It's also cheaper than owning a truck for those few task. Our house rule when borrowing my dad's truck was bring it back full. A friend left me hanging once with an empty tank. Next time he needed the truck, it wasn't available.
Helpful hint...try to avoid dropping the katapult (wire stripper), the jaws can be knocked out of alignment causing wires to be cut during the stripping process. They can be reset tho.
HEY!!! GET OUT AND MOW THAT GRASS!! LOL, Have a good day Step.
Stephen you’re supposed to cut the wires all the same length and then crisscross/tangle them up so that the lid has to be forced on😂, nice neat job, good work.
Work for HD Rental, I put a jumper cables on the 4 flat connection that always seems to come back damaged. That way the store just has to plug another one in. Quick fix to keep it rent ready
Yea I use those boxes on our fleet trucks or trailer 👍 they hold up good out in this AZ desert 🌵, if you don’t mind a recommendation I would add a second ground use the bolt to the cable clamp u installed and run it back it the box for ground it dose help
There is a light cord receptacle on the truck also place one on the trailer . Then wire this receptacle into the electrical junction box . 5/31/23
Great mechanic good work
fluid film the inside of the box it has helped mine stay nice for years in northern wi.
I insist that every customer of mine gets these. I have for years. I also only install molded cable and 7 way. Thank you for posting for more to understand
sway bar mounts not tire carriers, would have definately been in the way
Weight distribution hitch. That style not rated as anti sway. Curt round bar.
👍
I want to do this to my camper now! Great video!
Love the videos,hope y’all are doing well. Hope Chuck 2009 is doing well also.
As a Maintenance Tech, what would you pay for a trailer test box?? This box would hook to a 12 volt battery, and test all lights, turn signals, shorts and grounds. Or use the Red wire constant 12V to test that the tow rig has enough juice to handle the trailer.
Reminds me of that guy i let use my 3/4 electric drill, he locked the trigger lock on and it got away on him and ripped the cord off. That’s how I got it back.
I watched a guy play twister with one of those drills with a big 3/4 bit he did not know about the trigger lock
The reason the box was set the way it was so you can have 2 incoming connections and the box wiring is the out
I can see where thos is beneficial to have to run 2 different cords if its frequently towed with trucks with different 7 way (pin vs flat)
Thinking about installing a female connector on the trailer too. Then make up a extension cord with Male at both ends.
I've been doing that for years for me and customers . Works awesome
I used that same type of box on my truck build works great makes for clean and neat tail light wirring
I do like the junction box!
At time 10:10 you talk about borrowing things and taking them back washed and full of gas and oil changed, thank you I graduated high school with a guy who became a lawyer and while he was getting started in his practice he called me to see if he could borrow my 4-wheeler and he would return it washed waxed oil changed and full of gas so any time he asked to borrow it I was more than happy to loan it to him I have loaned out a trailer to friends and had them returned with flats wires ripped off or lights broken. Needless to say I no longer loan things out anymore.
Instead of silicone use grease. A little messy but creates a better seal and is removable. Oh and use dielectric grease on the terminals.
I have used those boxes every time I rewire trailors for over 10 years even if it is only a single axle 3500lb trailer without brakes
I have put a box like this on a couple of trailers so I can have both a 4flat and a seven round connector on the same trailer.
Older Ford L model trucks had a box similar to that and had a grease nub on them so you could pump grease into them and have seen those 7 terminal boxes on semi trailers with the grease fitting on them
Good job. I know I shouldn’t be picky but early you referred to spare tire holder while pointing to the load leveler hooks.
Smart decision on the silicone sealing. GJ Nice vidyoh. Keep it up
I was surprised to hear that 12 ga. wire was used. I would think that 18 ga. or 16 ga. would work better. I like the idea of the junction box and agree with you that trailer manufacturer's should make them standard equipment. Also, the crimpers that you used are PDG (pretty damn good).
the main set of wires looked like 14 gauge and the ground looked like 12 gauge, why would a smaller wire like 18 gauge work better?
@@ROTTK9 Please correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't 18 ga. pretty much standard for automotive use (the exception being high current circuits starter motors, headlights and auxiliary motors etc.) interior lights, windows, and door locks usually don't require much current. Cost should be lower with the 18 ga. Next would be flexibility, sharper bends with smaller wires. I'd have to check the specs, but !8 ga. should be able to handle the max. current load for most trailer applications. Most of us, me included, follow the mantra that bigger is better and for most applications that works well, but not all. Still the fix you installed will work very well and should last almost forever.
All the connections in the box just add resistance. I found installing a permanent male connector on the trailer then using a removable jumper with two female ends to go from truvk to trailer. Then only the jumper gets abused and is easily replace